


I wanna thank you, I wanna love you

by orphan_account



Category: SKAM (Norway)
Genre: Crack, Fake Marriage, Fluff, M/M, Thanksgiving, but make it different
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-30
Updated: 2019-11-30
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:26:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21612202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: “Oh my god.”  Eva rolls her eyes.  “I told you this.  It’s a Thanksgiving dinner.  Sonja and her husband are making most of the food but I offered to bring something.”-Isak finds himself tagging along with Eva to the Thanksgiving from hell.
Relationships: Even Bech Næsheim/Isak Valtersen
Comments: 29
Kudos: 181





	I wanna thank you, I wanna love you

**Author's Note:**

> your honor. my defense is.. i wrote most of this in the middle of the night still slightly wine drunk and in a food coma trying to avoid my extended family so..... plz don't kill me. laksjf sorry my thanksgiving fic is almost two days late but a girl's been eating good! 
> 
> but happy thanksgiving to you and yours, and if you don't celebrate i give my thanks to you for reading this and being lovely! 
> 
> (title is from Otis Redding's "I Want to Thank You")

Eva is still up when Isak gets home. Her eyes are glued to the TV, the only light emanating in the dark room. She doesn’t register his arrival until he flops onto the couch next to her.

“Fucking hell, Isak!” She looks over at him. “You scared the shit out of me.”

He grins at her. “Sorry. What are you watching?”

“Midsommar. I’m having a scary movie night.” She turns to him, face horrified. “This movie… oh my god. Have you seen it?”

Isak nods, unable to keep the smile off his face. “Yeah. It’s crazy. Even was the one that told me to watch it, actually.”

Eva turns back to the screen for a second, before Isak sees the recognition wash over her face. “Even! I completely forgot! Florence Pugh is just too fucking good.” She gives him a shove. “How was he?”

“We can talk about that later, if you want to finish the movie.”

Eva rolls her eyes. “You just went on a date with the guy you’ve been pining over for almost two months. I wanna hear everything.” She glares at the screen. “Besides, I need a break from that.”

Isak stretches out on the couch, putting his head in Eva’s lap. “I can’t even describe tonight.” He covers his face with his hands. He almost worries that he’ll combust with how big his smile is. “It was fucking everything.”

“What did you guys do?” Eva starts petting his hair.

“You know that new Lebanese place? With the really good drinks? We went there, and I was worried it would feel weird. Like it would be too fancy and we would just sit there and be weird. Like,” He sighs, picturing Even’s hearty laugh that he got to see so many times tonight. “What if the casual flirting didn’t translate to something real?”

“But it did?”

“It so fucking did.” Isak groans then. “Dinner ended up being like three hours. I didn’t even realize because we couldn’t stop talking.”

“You’re so cute like this.” Eva pulls out her phone. “Shit, it’s almost three in the morning. Did you have a little one night stand?”

Isak laughs with her. “Well we went back to his place, but we didn’t really do anything. Just kissing and talking about… everything. We both have work in the morning, so.”

“Yeah, who has a date on a Monday?”

“Well neither one of us wanted to wait until the weekend,” Isak says with a blush. He’s so whipped, but it’s a nice feeling, now that he knows Even feels the same.

“So when’s your next date?”

“Saturday.”

Eva grabs his shoulders, giving him an awkward hug from above. “That makes me so happy.”

Isak doesn’t respond, just holds onto her for a second longer.

“I mean it, Is.” She gives him a fond smile. “This is good. I love seeing you all excited. It’s been awhile.”

“Yeah. But I don’t want—” Isak doesn’t know how to say this without sounding like an ass.

Eva seems to read his face quite well. She gives him a little shake. “Oh my god. Isak. You can be happy. That won’t make me upset. It makes me feel better actually, you know? That my friend is doing well. Being in love and all that.”

“It’s not love—”

“Not yet.”

“Not yet,” Isak grins. “But. I just want the same for you. We deserve good people.”

“I know. But Chris definitely wasn’t going to be that for me. Maybe it’ll work out with someone else, but there’s no rush.”

“I know. I’m still here in the meantime though.” Isak knows they’re codependent, but right now he knows he’s the closest person in her life, and vice versa. Although he has some high hopes for Even.

She nods, smile lined with love and gratitude, before she shoves him off her lap. “Alright. I need to see how this ends.”

He finishes out the movie with Eva, the two of them half hiding behind a blanket.

When Isak makes it to his bed, he checks his phone, but tries to avoid looking at the time. He doesn’t need to think about how little sleep he’ll be getting before work tomorrow.

The anxiety quickly morphs into anticipation, however, when he sees his notifications.

_Even: I know it’s good you left, bc we both have “work” or whatever, but also. Come back_

_Isak: don’t tempt me. Go to sleep_

_Even: now I’m sad my team is done with coming to your office 😤 can’t flirt with the cute researcher anymore_

_Isak: true. But now you can make out with the cute researcher next time you see him_

_Even: can’t fucking wait_

Even had been part of the team that Isak’s company had brought in for the new ad campaign they were doing. Isak had only been there at the beginning, providing the research that they needed, but over the course of the project, Even kept roping Isak into helping him out with things.

Isak had floundered at first, feeling so awkward at this free-spirited guy waltzing through his buttoned-up office, but soon he just became enamored with everything Even did, every absurd idea he pitched.

Isak giggles in the quiet of his room, remembering how sad he was last week when the ad team was getting ready to head out and finish off the project through phone calls that Isak wouldn’t need to be in on.

He’d moped through the last meeting, until Even had caught him leaving for the day. He’d given Isak his number, saying he’d love to see him again.

Isak had refrained from contacting Even for about 6 hours, until Eva had returned from her night out and found him laying on the floor of the living room, still struggling to type out the perfect text.

She helped put him back together, as they had both done for each other too many times to count, and coached him on what to say.

Even had responded within five minutes. And within the hour a date was planned.

As Isak finally drifts off to sleep, still giddy with the success of his night, the last thought he has is the softness in Even’s touch, in his lips, as he and Isak parted ways with the promise of next time.

-

Both Isak and Eva are slow on their feet as they maneuver around each other on Tuesday morning.

“You’re still good to go to my work thing on Thursday, right?” Eva asks as Isak hands her a mug of coffee.

“Yeah. Is it like a sanctioned work event? Will I have to vouch for you to your boss? Convince him you shouldn’t get fired?”

“Fuck off, my boss loves me. No, Sonja, my cubicle buddy, is hosting it. I think there’s only a few people from the office invited, actually.”

“Do we like Sonja?”

“We do.” Eva nods emphatically. “She’s very chill compared to some of our coworkers. I want to be her friend so bad. If she wasn’t married…”

Isak raises his eyebrows. “So you want to be more than friends?”

“You have no idea,” Eva sighs. “But homewrecking was so high school.”

“So it’s just a party, then? Why do I have to go? I can’t be a good wingman if you’re not even going after her. Unless you want me to seduce the husband?”

Eva pauses her coffee-drinking. “I didn’t think of that—”

“I was joking,” Isak says with a hand up. “If you wanted that you should’ve asked two months ago.

“You only hooked up with Even last night.”

“Okay yes,” Isak says defensively. “But I’d been laying out a solid foundation beforehand. That part is critical. Either way, can I skip this? I have no reason to go.”

Eva groans. “I still want to be her friend, even if she’s married. And I think I’ll be the odd one out, because everyone else will know each other. So you have to come.”

“Why do you need to make a pie if it’s her party?”

“Oh my god.” Eva rolls her eyes. “I told you this. It’s a Thanksgiving dinner. Sonja and her husband are making most of the food but I offered to bring something.”

“I don’t get why she would need to do Thanksgiving.”

“I swear we already had this conversation. Sonja lived in the US for most of her life, so she wanted to bring the tradition here. I think she’s really nervous.”

“Why would she be nervous?”

Eva sighs. “You know I try not to get into the gossip at work,” Isak nods. She may not participate, but she certainly listens and discusses it later with him. “Apparently she’s been having a lot of issues with her husband. She never brings him to anything, and now people are saying she’s only doing this to show people her marriage isn’t falling apart.”

“Who even cares about that?”

“Have you heard me talk about some of my coworkers? They’ll run with anything.”

“Well has Sonja said anything about it?”

“She seemed a little frazzled, but we don’t really talk about personal stuff. But that’s why I want us to make a good impression! So she’ll invite me to more stuff and we can be real friends.”

Isak gives a dramatic huff. “Fine. But I hope you know I’m mostly going to witness the drama unfold at the dinner table.”

“Okay, if you say so. You’ll buy the ingredients tonight?”

“Just text them to me and I’ll pick them up on the way home.”

“It’ll be fun. I promise!”

-

Isak is perusing the shelves, looking for condensed milk, when he feels a tap on his shoulder.

“Even!”

Even has one hand on a cart, packed with groceries. “Hi.”

Despite everything, Isak feels weird at just running into him. Does he hug him, give him a high five? He’s about to do something weird, like give him a little salute, when Even takes a step closer.

“Would it—can I kiss you?” Even asks.

Isak nods, holding himself back from immediately clinging on to Even. “You can.”

It’s a brief kiss, both of them too full of smiles and stammers to fall into each other, but Isak likes the innocence of it. He cherishes the brush of lips, the steady thump of Even’s heart under Isak’s hand on his chest.

“Missed you,” Even whispers, once they take a small step back.

“Me too.” A customer has to squeeze behind Even to grab something off the shelf, and Isak is brought back to earth, just slightly. He gestures to the full cart. “Big shopping day?”

“Oh, that,” Even rolls his eyes. “I got roped into helping my roommate with some cooking for a party.”

“Sounds fun.”

“It won’t be. It’d be better if you could crash, though.”

“I save the crashing of parties for after the second date.”

“Damn. Should have asked you out sooner, then.”

Even’s phone buzzes. He reads the messages, rolling his eyes. “Asking where the food is.”

“I guess you gotta go be a good roommate.” They smile at each other. Isak then sees the condensed milk hiding right behind Even’s shoulder, and he reaches under his arm to grab it. “Found it.”

“Saturday, though?” Even asks, face full of hope.

“I’ll see you then.”

They part after one more kiss that leaves Isak weak in the knees, almost skipping on his way home to aid Eva in her baking endeavors.

-

By Thursday, the pie is baked, and Eva and Isak have educated themselves on American traditions by watching _Planes, Trains and Automobiles,_ and sending each other the best Thanksgiving memes Twitter has to offer. 

Isak carries the pie onto the tram, balancing it in one hand while he holds his pass in the other. Eva gives him a look when he pretends to lose control of the box.

“Don’t even think about it.”

He rolls his eyes. “Hey, should I pretend to be your boyfriend?”

“Why would you do that?”

“I don’t know, it’d be funny? Your coworkers would have something to talk about and Sonja might get jealous. Maybe I’ll see if I can still pass as straight. I told you I’m just coming to see some classic Thanksgiving drama.”

Eva just laughs at him. “You sound like Eskild. We have to remember to text him, by the way. See if he wants to do Christmas again this year.”

“Right. He’ll like that.”

Within a few minutes, they’re off the tram and walking down a vaguely familiar road. “One other thing,” Eva says with a wince, “Try not to ask Sonja and her husband too many questions.”

Isak’s brow furrows. “What does that even mean?”

“I mean, like, about their relationship. Sonja pulled me aside and asked that if people were getting too personal, to just change the subject.”

“Wow. And we thought our parents had dysfunctional marriages.”

“Right?” Eva laughs, steering Isak up a path that has him stopping in his tracks just before the front door. “I think you—what?” She asks at seeing his face.

“This is Even’s house. I didn’t know he lived with a couple.”

Eva furrows her brow, ready to respond when the door opens instead. “Eva! You came!” A frazzled blonde woman steps out, wearing an apron covered in various remnants of food. “And you brought a pie! Thank you.” Eva blushes when she gets pulled in for a tight hug, and rolls her eyes when Isak gives her a subtle thumbs up.

She’s introduced as Sonja, as she leads them down the hall into the kitchen. He wants to wander the house, head straight for the bedroom he knows is Even’s, but Eva grabs his attention before he can make his escape.

“Isak, this is my coworker Sara.” Eva gives him a knowing look as he greets the woman in front of him. She’s been quite the shit stirrer at the office, if Isak remembers correctly. Eva hands him a very heavy pour of wine, before getting one for herself.

There are about twenty people in total, and Isak thinks he spots some people he only recognizes from his brief stalking of Even’s Instagram, but he’s yet to see the man himself. He’s kind of nervous to just surprise him like this, but at least he has a reasonable explanation that won’t make him seem like a complete stalker.

“Eva, Sara? I want you to meet my husband.” Sonja comes back through the doorway, this time with a very familiar face. “This is Even.” She hugs him from the side, giving him a kiss on the cheek. But Even’s half-smile is frozen in place as his eyes find Isak’s.

Things are not computing properly. Sara introduces herself to Sonja’s husband (formerly known as Isak’s potential boyfriend), while Even stares at Isak, while Isak stares at the stain on Sonja’s apron that he thinks could be mistaken for the Virgin Mary, while Eva looks back and forth between each of them. In the haze of it all, Isak is vaguely aware of her downing her glass of wine.

“Did I tell you guys,” Eva starts, pulling Isak’s attention from the brief prayer of _what the fuck_ he’s sending to Sonja’s apron Madonna, “that Isak and I are dating?”

Sonja and Even raise their eyebrows in unison, both looking confused. “How nice!” Sonja says finally, looking like she half means it. “I should finish setting the table.”

How nice indeed. Isak finishes off his glass, as Sara continues to interrogate Even. He can’t comprehend what’s being said. All he knows is that Even’s voice, the one that had spoken to him so sweetly for months, is shaky and distressed.

He holds out his glass for Eva to pour him another, one hand still gripping onto the pie for dear life. He meets Even’s eyes just once, to see a horrified look that Isak wants to punch. He’s the one that’s devastated; Even has no reason to look so sad and beautiful like that.

“Uh, Isak?” He looks up at the sound of Even’s voice. “I can show you where to put the pie, if you want to come with me.”

Even gives a slight smile as he says it, and Isak almost forgets what is happening, feet shuffling with the urge to get closer to Even. But he looks past him to see Sonja laughing with delight in the hallway, and Isak thrusts the pie into Even’s hands.

“I’ll just give it to you.” He holds it out, jerking his hand away quickly when it brushes with Even’s. Even doesn’t even move, still trying to make eye contact with Isak.

Sonja arrives back then to announce that it’s time to eat, and she pulls Even and Sara into the dining room, gesturing for Isak and Eva to follow.

As soon as the kitchen is empty, they turn on each other, whisper-yelling. “What the fuck?”

“What the fuck? That was Even, right? _Even?_ ” Eva looks as shell-shocked as Isak feels.

“Yes! I don’t—what the—”

“You didn’t tell me he was married?”

“I didn’t fucking know he was married.” He’s never been that skeevy. It never occurred to him that Even would be.

“What the hell is going on?” Eva walks over and rests a hand on his arm, a look of pity on her face. Isak shrugs her off. He’s not ready to accept how foolish he feels right now.

“Why did you say we were dating?”

“I thought that would make it better! It was your idea in the first place.”

Isak rolls his eyes. “As a fucking joke.”

Eva gestures around the kitchen. “This whole night is already a fucking joke. This might be the Thanksgiving from hell, and it’s the only one I’ve ever been to. Can’t believe your boyfriend is married to my fucking crush.”

“Don’t even start. I can’t fucking deal with this. We really should’ve taken up Jonas on his offer to smoke this afternoon.”

Eva nods. “Usually I would disagree, but I don’t think we’re getting through this sober, if at all.”

Eva’s boss pops his head in the door for a moment. “Dinner’s starting, everyone!”

“Should we leave?” Eva asks, resting a hand on Isak’s arm again. “Maybe we should leave.”

Isak sighs. He had been laughing with Eva all day about all the family secrets that would come out around the table, but he didn’t think he’d be the butt of his own joke. 

He leans over the counter, and spots a plethora of wine bottles waiting to be opened. He grabs two and opens them, handing one to Eva as he takes a swig. “I think we should stay.”

“You sure?” Eva seems satisfied when he nods again, and she starts drinking from her own bottle. “Let’s go eat.”

As luck would have it, the only two seats available are right in the middle of the long table, across from the lovely host couple. Isak and Eva both go for the spot across from Sonja, Isak wanting to stay as far away from Even as possible, and Eva not wanting to be stuck with Sara on her other side. Eva wins out, refusing to meet Isak’s glare as she smiles around at everyone who witnessed their little scuffle.

“Okay!” Sonja says, standing up with a wine glass in hand. “Before we eat, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for coming tonight. As you may know, I’ve only been living in Norway for a few years, despite having some family here already, but it’s truly become home to me.” She gives Even a squeeze on the shoulder, and Isak is ready lose his shit, if he still has it. “But Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, and I wanted to share it with you all. So can we each go around and toast to what we’re thankful for?”

Everyone murmurs their agreement, and Sonja nudges for Even to get up first.

He stands with a grin, face getting serious as he looks at Isak again. “I’m grateful for a lot of things. My family, good friends,” he lifts his wine glass to Sonja, then to some people at the end of the table. “But mostly I’m thankful for… the universe, I guess. The universe and all of its parallels, the reminder that good things are always happening somewhere, at any time.”

Isak pulls his eyes away and glares at the giant cornucopia that sits as the centerpiece. He really doesn’t want to cry at the Thanksgiving table, and fuck Even for twisting the words Isak whispered to him in a moment of vulnerability as his stupid toast.

Eva’s boss, who’s sat next to Even stands up, saying something generic as Sara leans over Isak to whisper to Eva. “So weird. No wonder she never brings him anywhere.”

Eva just nods blandly, continuing to sip on her wine. The toasts of gratitude continue, and Isak realizes he’ll have to say something as well. He’s considering just airing all the dirty laundry that he knows about the people at this table, whether it be Eva’s coworkers or the guy sitting across from him that’s currently stomping on his heart.

Sonja encourages people to dig in, and Isak is ready to eat and drink his way to an early grave. He stabs into the beans, the turkey, the stuffing and potatoes with a vengeance. He only gets angrier as he eats, knowing that Even probably had a hand in making food this good. Eva rests a hand on his forearm when he shakes the table trying to cut his turkey.

“You good?” She mumbles under her breath.

Isak turns to her with the most sarcastic smile he can manage. “How do you think I am?”

Eva looks like she’s trying not to laugh as she pushes his wine bottle closer to him. “I know this is rough, but you have to admit, it’s kind of fun—”

Isak shakes his head before she can finish her sentence. “I’m not there yet. How about we just eat as much as we can and then get the fuck out of here?”

He wants to get mad that Eva is openly giggling at his predicament, but he forgives her just a little bit, knowing how much she’s had to drink tonight. Things are starting to feel a little funny for him too, underneath the hurt and confusion and fucking lunacy of it all.

His phone vibrates, and he audibly snorts when he sees Even’s name pop up. Even is raising his eyebrows at him, pointedly looking at his phone. What bullshit. Isak opens it anyways.

_Even: can we please talk?_

_Even: this is not what it looks like_

Isak gulps down his wine, holding himself back from splashing it all over Even. He contorts that anger into something slightly constructive and tries to work out a response.

_Isak: Are you married?_

Even’s face contorts as he reads it.

_Even: Technically yes. But I can explain_

Isak had hoped, for just a moment, that Even would write back some perfect explanation for it all, that this is just some weird joke or social experiment and Isak could smile about it and kiss him after putting him through the ringer, but no. Things never really work out for Isak like that.

_Isak: if you’re married there’s kind of no explanation needed. Btw these potatoes suck_

Even has the audacity to smirk as he texts back.

_Even: Can we please talk? I can’t explain over text but I really need to talk to you._

_Even: If you hated the potatoes so much why did you just take a second helping?_

Isak glares at his plate. Damn Even and his potato mashing skills. He lifts his plate to scoop them back into the bowl, just to make a point, but Sara pokes him before he can. It’s time for him to speak.

He stands slowly, looking around at people Even and Sonja must consider friends. If only they knew the dysfunction behind the scenes. He can’t help but look at Even, only to melt slightly under the intensity of his stare.

“I’m thankful for Eva,” he shares a smile with her as he speaks. “And I’m thankful for your loyalty and honesty. Those are really important traits to me, so just. Thank you for being a good person.” Isak meant everything he said to his best friend, but he’s looking at Even by the time he’s finished, and things don’t feel so funny and absurd anymore. Just sad, mostly. He’d thought—Even had been so real with him from the day they met. Or at least Isak took everything he shared as real.

He sits down, ignoring the concerned look from Eva and the prying one from Sara. Eva stands up, saying something nice about the food that Sonja seems to enjoy. Isak’s phone vibrates, but he no longer has the energy to text back something snarky or even slightly cutting. He just wants to go home.

But by the way Eva is engaging Sonja and her friends on her other side, he doesn’t want to drag her away just yet. She’s explained to him that she knows the guys are her friends too, but Isak understands that she still wants to expand her social circle.

Isak gets up from the table quietly, not needing to ask where the bathroom is. He walks by it anyways, heading for the back door into the tiny yard. It’s freezing without his jacket, but the chill clears his head a bit, makes him feel not so crazy.

He sighs when he hears the door slide behind him. He knows who it is, though he desperately hopes he’s wrong.

“Isak, I am so sorry about this.” He rounds on Even, hesitating to respond with rage when he sees the broken look in his eyes.

“I don’t even—I don’t know what to say,” Isak can feel his face heating up. “What the fuck?”

“Sonja and I met at university, and we became best friends,” Even starts. “She really means a lot to me, and I want to explain everything to you. But you have to promise me you won’t say anything to anyone.”

Isak rolls his eyes. “I really don’t plan on seeing you again after tonight, so you don’t have to say shit. You’re married, you’re an asshole, apparently. I get it.”

Even takes a step towards him, looking slightly frantic. “You don’t get it, though. Yes, Sonja and I are married. But not together.”

Isak hates how he feels slightly hopeful at that. “So you’re separated?”

“No. But yes. But also no.”

“I’m not following,” Isak huffs.

Even sighs, and leads Isak by the arm to sit on the stoop just outside the door. Isak follows willingly, adrenaline picking up at Even’s gentle touch.

“Sonja was born in the US. She messed up her visa stuff after university and she had to go back to America for awhile, so the easiest way for her to come back to Norway was if she got engaged and then married to a citizen. So we just decided to do it, so she wouldn’t have to worry anymore about doing it on her own and having the process take a ridiculously long time or getting deported or something.”

Isak stares at Even, trying to suss out if he’s lying. Even looks back, open and anxious. “So…you got married so she could become a citizen faster?”

Even nods slowly. “She would have eventually worked it out, but she wanted to move here so badly and be done with it, and marriage seemed like the easiest way for that to happen. I don’t know. It’s made plenty of other things complicated.”

“I can see that.” Isak deadpans.

Even cracks a self-deprecating smile. “We were young, and dumb, and I never thought—I didn’t really plan on getting married or being with someone for real, so I was happy to help out my friend. Because that’s all we are: friends. And roommates.”

Isak is still wary, but he can’t help the little smile that crosses his lips. “You guys are just friends?”

“Married friends, but yeah.” Even groans into his hands. “I know it’s a lot, and I should’ve told you—but I just like you so much. And we had already talked for awhile about my bipolar, I thought I should just wait until the second date for the marriage thing to come up.”

“Fucking hell,” Isak sighs. “You should’ve told me. I would’ve—I didn’t want to find out like _that._ ” He points back to the house.

“I know, I didn’t want that either. I’m sorry. It’s still kind of a mess.” Even glares into the yard. “She got her citizenship, but we have to wait at least awhile for everything to settle before we can get divorced. So it’s not suspicious.”

“How long, do you think?”

Even shrugs. “Six more months, maybe?”

“Oh.”

“But we don’t have to wait six months,” Even adds hopefully, gesturing between the two of them. “I mean, if that’s something you were still thinking about.”

Isak glares at him. He looks so pretty, just sitting here shivering in the dark. “I’m really fucking mad at you. This is like…this is a lot.” He scoots closer anyways, only for the purpose of sharing warmth.

“I know.” Even sighs, leaning into Isak’s side, eyes back on him. “I’m sorry I dragged you into this. But I couldn’t not try to get to know you. I get it if it’s all too much, but I just didn’t ever expect to meet someone like you. Despite all my shit, I just—I wanted you so bad.”

Isak can’t meet Even’s eyes right now, and instead looks at the hedge that lines the yard. He doesn’t need the warmth of the indoors if Even’s going to keep saying things that light a fire in his chest. “Let’s say we did go on that date on Saturday. What would you be telling Sonja, or your friends?”

“The truth. Most of our close friends know it all. I would tell them I met this incredible guy, and I’m really excited about being with him.”

Even’s smile is less anxious now, just honest. Isak knows he’s not holding his poker face so well, but he doesn’t really want Even to suffer. He just wants to make sure he’s not being totally idiotic by diving into all this. “And Sonja would be okay with that?”

Even nods immediately. “She would be more excited than anyone. She keeps wanting me to find someone.”

“Really?” Isak snorts. “Does she have someone?”

Even squints at him. “No, but she talks a lot about a certain ‘girlfriend’ of yours,” he says with a laugh, “Which is something we should talk about.”

“Eva was joking, obviously. I already told you on Monday that I’m very much gay,” Isak responds, feeling more lighthearted now that he and Even are laughing again, despite the mess.

“Just had to check. But Eva? What’s her deal?”

Isak groans. “Are you really trying to set up your wife with my girlfriend?”

“Our Thanksgivings will always be entertaining, that’s for sure.” Even bumps Isak’s shoulder with his own, and then keeps it there. Isak finds he doesn’t mind at all.

“Sonja’s feelings aren’t one-sided, that’s for sure. But Eva also thinks Sonja is in love with her husband, so…”

Even nods. “Right. Sonja’s old boss was always weirdly suspicious about our relationship, so she really puts on a show at work now.”

Isak snorts. “Makes it hard to hook up with coworkers when they think you’re married.”

“Well,” Even shrugs. “Maybe you’ll just have to explain things to Eva. Although she’ll probably figure it out once we get together.”

Isak glares at him. “I’m not giving in that easy.”

“No. I know.” Even says, put out.

“Stop looking like that.” Isak huffs.

“Like what?”

“All sad and attractive and. Kissable, I don’t know.”

Even lights up. “What was that? You want to kiss me?”

Isak gives him a little shove, but Even grabs his hand and tucks it between both of his, looking serious again. “Really though. I am so sorry for all of this. I get it if it’s too much.”

Isak sighs. “I can’t just stay away from you either. It’s complicated, but—” he laughs, thinking about the ridiculousness of the whole night. “Maybe less complicated than it was ten minutes ago, when I thought I was the sidechick.”

“You’d never be my sidechick.” They both laugh, but Even takes both of Isak’s hands. “I mean it though. I’m not playing around with you. And I’m sorry that it all came out seeming like I am.”

Isak shakes his head. “I hoped you weren’t. The evidence was pretty stacked against you though. Having a wife and all that.” Isak looks back through the door, feeling chilly again now that all the confronting is done.

“I guess we should go back inside.” Even sighs.

“I guess so. Just so you know, I won’t tell anyone. About Sonja, and the citizenship. If you were worried.”

Even gives him a fond smile. “Thank you.”

They look at each other for a moment. Isak meant what he said; he doesn’t think he can ever keep from Even. He leans in slowly, brushing his nose against Even’s as a question.

Even answers with a bruising kiss, and that settles it. Technically married or not, Isak knows how right this feels. They kiss slow, relief flooding them both now that everything is out in the open.

Isak pulls back after a minute, holding back the urge to clamber on top of Even out in the yard. Even gives him another nuzzle with his nose that leaves Isak giggling.

“I’m still pissed,” Isak whispers.

“That makes sense,” Even smiles back. “Here.” He pulls out his phone, holding it out so Isak can see what he’s doing over his shoulder. Even pulls up his texts with Sonja.

_So Isak is that guy I was telling you about. Sorry to bail on dinner but I had to explain some shit. Obviously. We’ll be back in a minute._

Isak rolls his eyes. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“I wanted to, though.”

Sonja’s response rolls through a second later.

_Omg! Why didn’t you say anything sooner!_  
_I wouldn’t have been so touchy w you_  
_Idiot_  
_Wait. Does that mean he’s not with Eva?_

They both crack up at that.

“Okay,” Isak sighs. “Maybe I feel a little better.”

He kisses him, Even deepening it this time, and Isak relaxes all over again. His eyes open for a moment when Even grips his neck firmly, loving the lead Even takes, but something moves just outside his field of vision that gives him pause. He looks into the house again to see Sara staring at them through glass.

“Fuck.” He jolts as she scurries back down the hall. “Sara just saw us.” He tries to stand to catch her, but Even holds him in place.

“It’s okay.”

“What if she says something? I don’t want you guys to get in trouble.”

Even snorts. “Do you really think her first thought will be that this is a sham marriage for Norwegian citizenship purposes? It’s better if she just assumes I’m cheating on my wife,” Even winces, “With her coworker’s boyfriend.”

“God damnit,” Isak groans.

“Should we go eat some pie?” Even says with a smile.

“Maybe you should go in first. And I’ll wait a few minutes.”

Even pulls Isak to his feet. “Who cares. If anyone asks, we went out for a smoke.”

“Wait.” Isak pulls Even back into his arms, walking him out of view of the door. “I didn’t say it in there, but I’m thankful for you.”

Even blushes, leaning into kiss him. “You’re sweet.” He pulls him in for a proper hug, and Isak loves how warm he feels as he wraps his arms around Even’s neck and holds him tight.

They have to part eventually, and Even leads him back inside, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before they enter the dining room again. The pies and ice creams are out on the table, dessert almost done. Luckily people seem too caught in chatting and cleaning up to pay any attention to Isak and Even’s return.

Everyone but the three women surrounding them, of course. Sonja is trying to hide a smile as they sit back down, while Eva looks gravely concerned and Sara wears a shit-eating grin.

Isak ignores her to shoot Eva a reassuring smile. “What’s going on?” She whispers. Isak takes a large slice of apple pie and a scoop of ice cream, breathing a sigh of relief when Sara finally gets up to socialize with people at the other end of the table.

He gets distracted by the feeling of Even’s foot brushing against his ankle, almost choking on his ice cream when he starts moving his foot up Isak’s leg.

“Isak?” She whispers again.

“Um. Long story?”

“But a good one?” She asks hopefully.

Isak nods. “I’ll explain more later, but they’re not really together.”

Eva raises her eyebrows. “Seriously?”

“Also. Maybe going after Sonja is a good idea.”

“Did he say something?” Eva asks. They look across the table to see Sonja and Even in a similar position, whispering to each other. They smile awkwardly when they notice Isak and Eva staring at them.

People start bringing their plates into the kitchen, and Even and Sonja get up to be good hosts.

Eva grins at Isak. “Maybe we should help out our new friends.”

The four of them take clean up duty, while the rest of the guests maneuver around them. 

Isak and Eva get through the dishes quickly, while Sonja wraps up leftovers. Even then makes a big show of yawning and shuffling people out the door, nobody really realizing they’re getting kicked out with how charming he is.

Isak and Eva look to each other, trying to decide if they should head out with everyone. Before they can make a move, Sonja asks them for their help in the dining room.

“You guys could stay for another drink if you’d like?” Sonja asks once they’re grabbing the last of the silverware.

“We’d love to.” Eva says brightly. “We still need to talk about that moment between Sara and David.”

“Right?” Sonja says, leading them back into the kitchen. “I’m so glad you caught that. I’m sure we’ll be hearing about it tomorrow.”

Isak groans when he remembers Sara. “You might be hearing about a little more than that, actually.”

Sonja and Eva look to him expectantly.

“She may have…seen something. When Even and I were—when we were talking.”

To his relief, Sonja just laughs. “Oh my god. Talking, were you?”

“I’m surprised she didn’t announce it to the table.” Eva adds in.

“Sorry about that.” Isak says.

Sonja shakes her head, still laughing as she pours them all one more glass of wine. Even wanders back in from the front door, last of the guests gone. 

“What should we toast to?” Sonja asks, once they all have their glasses.

“I don’t know about you guys,” Even starts, “but that was the best Thanksgiving I’ve ever been to.”

“Me too.” Eva says. Isak looks over to see her sharing a shy smile with Sonja.

“To the best Thanksgiving.” Even says, as the four of them clink glasses. Even moves to stand next to Isak then, arm wrapping around his waist. “So far.”

**Author's Note:**

> i can tell you that about ten minutes of reading went into the "research" of this fic, so just don't look too closely at the whole norwegian citizenship plot... alskdf i can assure you it won't pan out. but this entire thing is a crack shitfest so i'm okay with it.


End file.
